Stray Kids Make History at Rock in Rio, Wow Billboard

K-pop group Stray Kids became the first K-pop act to headline Rock in Rio, one of the world's largest music festivals. Billboard praised the group's performance as a historic and powerful festival debut.

The group took the festival's main stage, Palco Mundo, on September 11 local time at Olympic Park in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Performing before a crowd of 100,000, the members delivered songs they helped create and commanded the sprawling stage with explosive performances, sparking thunderous cheers and singalongs.

Fireworks and a large-scale lighting show added to the spectacle. Stray Kids embraced the local atmosphere by breaking into samba steps during "Chk Chk Boom" and singing a song by a Brazilian artist a cappella as they connected with the crowd.

Billboard highlighted the group's Rock in Rio debut in an article published on September 12. The outlet wrote that Stray Kids made history as the festival's first K-pop headliner and thrilled South American fans with a standout debut.

Billboard also noted the members' styling inspired by traditional Korean aesthetics, powerful performances, string of hits and close interaction with the audience throughout the show. It described the set as a historic and intense debut that left the crowd wanting more, calling it the opening chapter for K-pop at Rock in Rio.

Stray Kids are continuing their run as headliners across Latin America. "STRAYCITY," a new festival series headlined by the group and organized by JYP Entertainment and U.S. concert promoter Live Nation, opened in Bogotá, Colombia, on September 9.

The festival continues in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on September 14 and 15 before heading to Mexico City on September 25 and 26.